Tower Paths are long-term progression choices that can change a tower’s role or unlock a stronger version. The exact nodes, prerequisites, costs and eligible towers belong to the live Paths interface. Community discussion mentions path progression for towers including ITrapped and other endgame units, but you should never spend from an old screenshot. Open the current node, read every prerequisite and compare what the path adds to your actual loadout.
Path decision worksheet
Find and read a path
Open the in-game Paths area and select the owned tower. Read nodes from the beginning; later screenshots can hide prerequisite costs. Confirm whether a requirement is account level, tower tier, missions, currency, badge, event progress or a previous node. Take a screenshot before spending so you can compare after an update.
Names such as “Tier IV” in community pages may describe a tower progression state, not necessarily the same thing as the current Paths UI. Use the live terminology when deciding.
Choose by loadout need
Start with the role that blocks progression. If early waves prevent you from placing a carry, improve an affordable opener before chasing maximum late DPS. If groups are the issue, prioritize real target cap or AoE. If one boss survives, compare focused damage and support scaling. Detection, range or role compression can be more valuable than a larger raw damage figure.
Path value also depends on map geometry. A short-range upgrade may look powerful in Sandbox but underperform on a route with few legal bends. Test the resulting tower on the map and mode you actually farm.
Verify the upgrade
Record the before state: tier, path, costs, range, target properties and a repeatable Sandbox or live run. After unlocking, repeat the same test with one variable changed. Compare total in-run cost and first failure, not only the card number. If the path adds an ability, record activation and downtime.
Avoid common mistakes
- Spending because a tier list omits its patch date.
- Assuming a hero/path can be unlocked without its base tower.
- Comparing different tiers, support or modifiers.
- Choosing late damage while still failing the opener.
- Ignoring placement limit and board space.
- Treating a cosmetic skin as a path upgrade.
Progression order
Maintain one repeatable farming team first. Upgrade the role used in most runs, then a specialist for Hard/Insane or Endless. Leave niche or cosmetic goals until the core team can earn resources consistently. Use missions and the F2P guide to plan resources without assuming paid unlocks.
Compare two path investments
List each path’s complete visible prerequisites, resource cost and promised role change. Then identify the mode and map where that change matters. A range or detection node can outperform raw damage if it creates real uptime; a large late bonus can be poor when the account still fails before placing the tower.
If respec rules or refunds are not clearly shown, assume the choice is costly to reverse and wait until the live information is understood. Do not infer a refund from another tower-defense game.
After unlocking
Verify that the node is active on the intended tower and record its new card. Repeat the same Sandbox or live scenario used before purchase, keeping support and modifier fixed. Note both out-of-match resource cost and in-run cost to reach the useful breakpoint.
Update saved loadouts that depend on the old role. If the path compresses two jobs, test which slot it actually frees. If it only improves a showcase number but the first failure is unchanged, the next investment should target the remaining weakness rather than continuing blindly down the branch.